Submitted by the Event Organizer
Here’s a great free weekend hike idea from SFGATE’s Madeline Wells.
Since 26 members of the “Chosen Family” moved into a mansion on Marin County’s Rancho Olompali in 1967 (and got evicted in 1969 after the house burned down), no one has lived at Olompali. But in the late 1970s, the ranch became a state historic park — and today, you can hike to the ruins of the once-grand mansion.
For extensive details about the hike including photos, info on the wild history of the “Chosen Family,” and how to find a reconstruction of a Miwok village, check out the article Hike to the ruins of the Chosen Family hippie commune at the Bay Area’s Olompali State Historic Park from SFGATE
While Olompali’s ill-fated hippie commune continues to fascinate visitors long after their eventful two years came to an end, the park’s history begins far before 1967. A village was founded in Olompali in about A.D. 1000, with the Coast Miwok people being some of its earliest inhabitants.
The name “olompali” comes from the Miwok language and may be translated as “southern village” or “southern people.” The Coast Miwok inhabited at least one site within the area of the present-day park continuously from as early as 6,000 BC, until the early 1850s.
Then began the more nature-focused portion of our hike: the 3-mile Loop Trail through the lower slopes of Burdell Mountain, where California bay, oaks and red-barked madrone trees offered welcome shade from the heat (the more ambitious can take the steeper 8-mile Burdell Trail, which rewards hikers with breathtaking views of the San Francisco Bay, Mount Tamalpais, and Mount Diablo).
Whether you prefer skipping the hike in favor of a picnic among the shady oak trees by the Burdell mansion or ascending the 1,558-foot Mount Burdell, a visit to Olompali has a lot to offer
Getting There:
Olompali State Historic Park, 8901 Redwood Blvd., Novato, CA. The park is open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Parking is $8 per vehicle
For more hikes in the Bay Area and around California, check out SFGATE Outdoors.
Disclaimer: Please double check event information with the event organizer as events can be canceled, details can change after they are added to our calendar, and errors do occur.
Cost: FREE
Categories:
*Top Pick*,
In Person,
Nature,
Outdoors,
SponsoredVenue: Olompali State Historic Park
Address: 8901 Redwood Blvd., Novato, CA
